Car-refrigerating apparatus



(No Model.)

W. S. PARKER.

UAR REFRIGERATING APPARATUS. No. 450,976. Patented Apr. 21, 1891.

WITNESSES [WVEWTUTY UNTTED STATES PATENT OEETCE.

IL-LIAM S. PARKER, OF PONTIAC, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TO M. B. MILLS, OFDETROIT, MICHIGAN.

CAR-REFRIGERATING'AP PARATUS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 450,976, dated April21, 1891.

Application filed August 11, 1890. Serial No. 361,700. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, WILLIAM S. PARKER, a citizen of the United States,residing at Pontiac, county of Oakland, State of Michigan, have inventeda certain new and useful Improvement in Oar-Refrigerating Apparatus; andI declare the following to be afull, clear, and exact description of thesame,such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it pertainsto make and use the same, reference being had 10 the accompanyingdrawings, which form a part of this specification.

In the drawings, Figure l isa sectional view of a car illustrating myinvention. Fig. 2 is a separate view in plan showing therelativerelations of the different parts.

The invention has for its object to provide novel means for cooling orrefrigerating a car by connections with the train-pipe orauxiliary-reservoir of the air-brake system; and to such end theinvention consists in the features of construction and the combinationor arrangement of devices hereinafter described and claimed.

In carrying out my invention, A represents any ordinary refrigerating orother car.

Bis the train-pipe of its air-brake mech anism; O, its auxiliaryreservoir from which air is supplied to the brake-cylinder. (Not shown.)

D is my air-storage chamber, which is preferably made as large asconvenient in order to accumulate as large a charge of air as possible.

cl is a pipe or conduit leading from the auxiliary reservoir ortrain-pipe to the storage-chamber D. In the drawings it is shown asleading directly from the train-pipe. d is a check-valve located thereinto prevent backflow toward the train-pipe.

E is a discharge-pipe leading from the storage-chamber up into the carwhere the air may be discharged in spray form, if desired, at c.

6 represents a pressure-regulating device of any usual constructionthrough which the compressed air may be caused to discharge at apredetermined rate.

F is a brine-tank in the car, and F represents any suitable system ofradiating pipes leading therefrom, through which said brine may becaused to circulate. G is a dischargepipe leading up into the bottom ofsaid tank and provided, if desired, with asprayg at the end.

g is a pressure-regulating valve similar to c, and g a cheek-valve toprevent backtlow of brine.

II is another discharge-pipe leading up and arranged to discharge intoone of the brinecirculating pipes, so as,if desired, to produce anenforced circulation, it being also provided with a pressure-regulator hand checkvalve h, the same as above described, to regulate the rate' ofdischarge of the air and prevent backflow of brine.

The top of the brine-tank is preferably open at f.

The operation is as follows: Itis well known that the air-compressor onthe locomotive compresses a very much greater amount of air than isneeded. for braking purposes, and that it is generally kept runningnearly all the time, and the excess of air is permitted to escape. In myapparatus, however, this excess of air is permitted to flow into thesaid storage-chambers Whenever there is a preponderating pressure in thetrain-pipe. This it accomplishes without robbing the pipe of thepressure required for the air-brakes.

This air thus stored is fed off into the car, as

may be most expedient. If discharged directly into the car through apipe or spray c, it will serve to quickly cool the apartment, properapertures being provided in all cases for the escape of the excess ofair in the car. So again, if discharged into the bottom of a brine-tank,it will at once refrigerate the lower portion by its immediateexpansion, yet being still partly compressed by the waterpressure itgradually expands more as the pressure diminishes on its rise throughthe brine, and so constantly adds to its refrigerating capacity, andfinally discharging at the top into the car it reaches its fullexpansion and produces a corresponding refrigerative effect at thispoint in the top of the ear. Agaiu,ifdiseharged into one of thecirculatingpipes through II, it will operate to make an enforcedcirculation of the brine through the said pipes. If the airisdischarged, as above, into the brine, the effect is not only to cool thecar, but to so thoroughly cool the brine that it may operate for someperiod like so much ice to maintain the low temperature, even thoughtemporarily the air may have been eX- hausted from the storage-chamber.An advantage derived from this construction is that a refrigerator-carprovided with this apparatus may be coupled into any train havingair-brakes regardless of Whether any of the other cars have the sameapparatus. It may also be used forcooling passenger-cpaches, if desired.

It is manifest that even though a refrigerator-car had no air-brake itmight be provided with a section of train-pipe and an airstoragechamber, and this pipe be provided with means for coupling it into atrain with other cars that had air-brake apparatus, or into cars havinga similar arrangement as that just explained, and 1 would have itunderstood that my invention contemplates such a variation.

\Vhat I therefore broadly claim is- A refrigerating apparatus forrailroad-cars, consisting of the combination, with the trainpipe orother compressed-air compartment of the air-brake system, of abrine-tank having oirculating-pipes in the car, an air-storage chamberconnected with the car and communicating with the said train-pipe orcompartment, a dischargepipe leading from the airstorage chamber andconnecting with the circulating-pipes for conducting the air thereintoand refrigerating and causing the brine to traverse the brine-tank andits circulatingpipes, and means for regulating the rate of dischargethrough the discharge-pipe, substanti ally as described.

In testimony whereof I sign this specification in the presence of twoWitnesses.

VILLIAM S. PARKER. tVitnesses:

W. H. CHAMBERLIN, ADOLPH WURZBURG.

